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We made it three weeks into 2019 before we hit a maple recipe. Glazed Maple Pecan Shortbread Cookies, to be exact.

This is a recipe that involved heavy experimentation for me. The base recipe made maple logs, which were then dipped in chocolate. I found the log-making process awkward. I didn’t want milk chocolate paired with maple, either.

Therefore, I tweaked and twisted things around, and the end result was a cookie that reminds me a lot of Pecan Sandies from the grocery store, just with a necessary oomph of maple.

Instead of making the cookies into logs, I press them flat and used by bench knife to slice them into squares. A drizzle of maple glaze added just the right touch of sweetness after baking.

These are ideal cookies to go along with coffee or tea. They are a little dry and crumbly, but easy to eat in a bite or two.

Plus, you can omit the pecans if necessary! You’ll get fewer cookies, but the texture and maple goodness are still downright scrummy.

Bready or Not Original: Glazed Maple Pecan Shortbread Cookies

These cookies taste a lot like Pecan Sandies, just with a special oomph of maple. That said, you can actually omit the pecans and they still taste great, you’ll just have fewer cookies. With the recipe intact, the end result is about 35 inch-square cookies.

Cookies:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup shortening

1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon maple flavoring

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup quick oats

1/2 cup finely chopped pecans

1/2 teaspoon salt

Glaze:

1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

1+ Tablespoon milk or half & half

1 teaspoon maple flavor

Preheat oven at 325-degrees. In a large bowl, cream together the butter, shortening, and confectioners' sugar. Beat in the vanilla and maple flavor.

In another bowl, sift together the flour, oats, pecans bits, and salt. Gradually combine with the wet mixture until it forms a cohesive mix.

Clean off a space of counter or tear off a large piece of parchment paper. Dump the cookie dough out and form it a roughly 8x8 square. Use a bench knife or a pizza cutter to slice into squares about an inch in diameter.

Transfer cookies to a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Add a little space between cookies, but they won't spread much.

Bake for 14-17 minutes, until cookies are set and lightly browned. Transfer to a rack to cool.

Once all the cookies are baked and at room temperature, set out another piece of parchment paper. Place the cookies there, close together.

In a small bowl, mix together glaze ingredients, adding enough milk to create a dribbling consistency. Use a fork to dribble glaze or the back of a spoon to coat each one. Leave out for an hour or so to set, then seal in container at room temperature.

Allow cookies to cool on pan for five minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in a sealed container between parchment or waxed paper layers; the applesauce will make the cookies slightly tacky if they touch each other. They'll keep for up to a week at room temperature.

Beneath Ceaseless Skies just published a new story of mine called “The Blighted Godling of Company Town H.” It’s about manufactured gods, bureaucratic magic, and nuclear waste. It can be read online for free–and you can download or play the story narrated by the wonderful Tina Connolly!

For a limited time only, snag the ebook of Breath of Earth for a mere $1.99! This book has only been on sale once before, in May-June 2017, and I doubt it’ll go on sale again this year. Get it while you can, then go on to read the next two books in the completed Blood of Earth trilogy. No wait required!

After the earth’s power under her city is suddenly left unprotected, a young geomancer must rely on her unique magic to survive in this fresh fantasy novel from the author of the acclaimed The Clockwork Dagger.

In an alternate 1906, the United States and Japan have forged a powerful confederation— the Unified Pacific—in an attempt to dominate the world. Their first target is a vulnerable China. In San Francisco, headstrong secretary Ingrid Carmichael is assisting a group of powerful geomancer wardens who have no idea of the depth of her own talent—or that she is the only woman to possess such skills.

When assassins kill the wardens, Ingrid and her mentor are protected by her incredible magic. But the pair is far from safe. Without its full force of guardian geomancers, the city is on the brink of a cataclysmic earthquake that will expose the earth’s power to masterminds determined to control the energy for their own dark ends. The danger escalates when Chinese refugees, preparing to fight the encroaching American and Japanese forces, fracture the uneasy alliance between the Pacific allies, transforming San Francisco into a veritable powder keg. And the slightest tremor will set it off. . . .

Forced on the run, Ingrid makes some shocking discoveries about herself. Her already considerable magic has grown even more fearsome . . . and she may be the fulcrum on which the balance of world power rests.

Let’s start off the new year with a deliciously cheesy recipe to make a salad extra special: Baked Goat Cheese Salad Rounds!

This recipe is super easy. There are only four ingredients! The work is minimal as it goes in stages.

The end result is a delicious, fancy cheese to add to your salads over the coming weeks. I do large salads with lots of cheese, so I use two rounds. For a small salad–or if you want less cheese (goat cheese IS strong)–do one round.

The nice thing about this is that the recipe has everything portioned and ready in the freezer. In the time it takes to assemble the salad, the cheese rounds are baked and ready for eating.

This is true whether you’re cooking for one, or for a group over for brunch.

I made this recipe using the goat cheese available at Costco, where it is sold in a pack of two 10.5-ounce logs. A glance at Bready or Not of a month ago will show where the other log went–into Swirled Goat Cheese Brownies.

Adapted from a recipe featured in Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2010.

Bready or Not: Baked Goat Cheese Salad Rounds [Gluten Free]

This simple and healthy recipe produces gluten-free, pecan-coated goat cheese rounds that are kept frozen until meal time. This is a great recipe for a person eating solo, or to bake up as an elegant cheese to accompany salads for a crowd.

1 cup pecans

10.5 ounces goat cheese, softened

1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs

2 large eggs, room temperature

In a food processor, pulse pecans until finely chopped. Transfer the pecans to another bowl. Add the cheese and herbs to the processor and process until smooth, about 30 seconds. Chill cheese in fridge in a covered bowl until firm, at least an hour.

Set up a work station. Beat the two eggs in a small bowl. Place next to the bowl of pecan pieces. Lastly, line a small cookie sheet or plate with waxed paper.

Use tablespoon scoop to doll out about 12 equal dollops of goat cheese onto the waxed paper. Smooth out a ball of cheese between palms, then dip into the egg, allowing excess to run off, then press and roll the ball to coat with pecan. Set back on waxed paper. Repeat with other balls. Use palm or the bottom of a glass to compress the cheese into flat rounds. Place in freezer for several hours, at minimum.

Once they are set, transfer the rounds to a sealed container for the freezer with waxed paper between the layers. IMPORTANT: They will go straight from the freezer to the oven. Don't thaw, or they'll lose their shape when baking!

When ready to bake, preheat oven or toaster oven at 475-degrees. Place foil on cookie sheet. Remove from freezer however many cheese rounds desired to cook; two rounds per large salad works well. Spray foil and cheese lightly with cooking spray.

Bake until the nuts are golden brown and cheese is warmed through, 7 to 10 minutes. Let cool several minutes. Set on a salad of greens tossed with a vinaigrette.

Let’s end 2018 on a sweet note with these White Chocolate Spiced Blondies!

These things are fantastic. Their spiciness is mild and refreshing. These would be great for a between Christmas-and-New-Year party, or any time of year.

I’m a firm believer that good food shouldn’t be confined to just one season. If you like it, eat it when you want.

This recipe is fairly fast to mix up. Chopping up the crystallized ginger is the most tedious thing; rather than use a knife, I like to use kitchen shears. The blades can still get goopy after a few pieces, but I have more control over the cuts.

Since I’ve been asked before, you can often find crystallized ginger in the spice area at the grocery store–look in the glass jarred section. Also, if you have a natural food store like Sprouts, check their bins.

I love to keep candied ginger around for recipes like this. If I can catch a good sale around the holidays, I stock up!

If you want to stock up on these blondies, do note that they freeze well. Pack some in the freezer for later enjoyment!

Bready or Not: White Chocolate Spiced Blondies

These blondies are refreshingly spicy. The sweetness of the white chocolate goes so very well with the little kick of the crystallized ginger mixed throughout. These are great for the holidays and year-round!

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon ground cardamom

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter (two sticks), room temperature

1 3/4 cups brown sugar, packed

3 eggs, room temperature

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

6 ounces (about half a bag) white chocolate chips

1 Tablespoon chopped crystallized ginger

Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Line a 13x9 inch baking pan with aluminum foil and apply nonstick spray or butter.